Nov 28, 2025 Jesus: The Sunrise From On High – Words of Grace Blog – November 28, 2025
| God created a physical world to communicate the glories of his grace. Sunrise, with its colorful illumination of all matter upon which we live and from which we derive resources for life, is a spectacular display of God’s revelatory ways. God makes things visible through light.
It is clear from what the Bible says about light that there are two kinds of darkness. The first light was physical because the first darkness was the same. Light was given for us to see what God had made. As the Bible continues to tell us about God, we hear of another light that reveals his ways in a world of sin and darkness of the soul. On the day of the birth of the great prophet John, his father Zechariah made this prophecy about him: “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:76-79, ESV). Most parents would rather prophesy about how great their child will be than about how their child will prepare the way for someone greater than he. But John’s role, according to his father and the Scriptures, was to make people ready for the Sunrise by which they will see. When the Sun rises on them, they will get up from their darkness and be guided in the steps of peace as their sins are forgiven by a merciful God. The Sunrise from on high in Zechariah’s prophecy is Jesus born to Mary on a dark night in Bethlehem. Into the physical and spiritual darkness came the light in a physical man who gives spiritual life. Light is most appreciated when darkness is a real, felt experience. Do you feel it? Do you let yourself feel it? We don’t have to be overly sensitive people to feel the darkness of war, conflict, and rage in our world. The darkness of poverty and human exploitation is at nearly every major intersection of our city. With just a little imagination, we can perceive the darkness behind closed doors and in the hearts of so many suffering people. But this darkness does not overcome the light; it is the reason for it. The Sunrise from on high is the Son of God who came to save. He saves us by showing that forgiveness of sin is granted by him, that new life is found in him, and that the way to peace with God and each other is mediated by him. The light of Sunrise overcomes the darkness. As we enter the Advent season, we will take up the first two chapters of the Gospel According to Luke and ask God to help us see the glories of his grace in the light of Jesus Christ. This weekend, take these chapters into your time of prayer and let them prepare you to worship this Sunday. -Scott |